Meleager's Blue
Key facts
- Latin name
- Polyommatus daphnis
- Family
- Lycaenidae
- Wingspan
- 32-42 mm
- Flight season
- June — August
- Host plants
- Crown vetch, Clover, Vetch
- Conservation status
- LC
Appearance
Meleager's blue (Polyommatus daphnis) is a large blue with a wingspan of 32–42 mm. Male: upper side intensely blue with a broad dark border. Female dark brown, often with a bluish dusting at the wing base; hindwings with a clearly toothed outer margin.
Underside pale gray with rows of dark spots and a characteristic white streak in the discal cell of the hindwings.
Range and habitat
Found in Central and Eastern Europe, Asia Minor, and the Caucasus. In Russia in the European part, mainly in steppe and forest-steppe zones.
It lives on dry limestone and chalk meadow slopes, clearings, and steppes with crown vetch. It needs warm, sun-exposed habitats.
Life cycle
One generation per year. Flight June–August.
Eggs on crown vetch. Caterpillar green with lateral stripes. It associates with ants. Pupa overwinters in litter.
Notes
Meleager's blue is characteristic of steppe and forest-steppe landscapes. Loss of pasture and scrub encroachment on dry slopes reduce its range in Western Europe.
The species is named after Daphnis — a shepherd in Greek mythology, patron of herdsmen and inventor of bucolic poetry.